


I Believe in You

by InvisibleObserver13



Category: Cobra Kai (Web Series)
Genre: Christmas, Cobra Kai Secret Santa, F/M, Post-Season/Series 02, Post-Season/Series 02 Finale, Season/Series 03 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:08:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28343649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InvisibleObserver13/pseuds/InvisibleObserver13
Summary: Carmen has something to say to Johnny.
Relationships: Carmen Diaz & Johnny Lawrence, Carmen Diaz/Johnny Lawrence, Miguel Diaz & Johnny Lawrence
Comments: 10
Kudos: 49
Collections: Cobra Kai Secret Santa Exchange





	I Believe in You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Raphiday](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raphiday/gifts).



> This fic is my gift to Raphidae on Tumblr. It was written for the Cobra Kai Secret Santa Exchange in December 2020. It was not the story I set out to tell but came on its own after the original wasn't working for me anymore. If it comes off as a bit rough, I apologize. I only started working on this story shortly before Christmas and I've never written this couple before or any of the characters that appear in it, besides Johnny. The Season 3 trailer and subsequent clips inspired me, so naturally, there are a few spoilers. The title comes from the Twisted Sister song of the same name. I hope that you enjoy it. Special thanks to TheLadyDisdain for translating a few lines of Spanish for me.

Carmen watches as Johnny hands a red envelope to Miguel. Her son beams happily up at his sensei. Her heart aches inside her chest. For a moment, she has to look away. Or else, they’ll see the tears fall.

It’s Christmas Day. Roughly, four months and a week since that awful day. It’s still hard to believe that much time has passed. And yet, Carmen remembers it just like it was yesterday. Her heart nearly stopped when she received the call from the school. Seeing her Miggy pale, unconscious, and broken like that was a mother’s worst nightmare.  _ No. It could have been worse. _ But it’s best not to dwell on that.

She was so furious with Johnny then. She had blamed him for teaching her son karate. She thought Miggy would have been better off if he had never met the fifty-something drunk. Her baby boy wouldn’t have been in fights. Or have been so aggressive at that tournament. Or been kicked off that railing by Johnny’s son.

_ Stop. _

Johnny may have failed to keep his promise from last Halloween, but he’s since made up for it.

Despite his mistakes and her ordering him to stay away from her son, Johnny has proven his devotion to Miguel. He respectfully stayed away for a time. But Rosa felt sorry for him and he seemed to pick himself back up and make amends. And Miguel needed him. They needed each other. They made each other better and stronger. It took a while for Carmen to recognize that.

Johnny helped Miguel with his physical therapy. He brought back the light and confidence in her boy that seemed lost after he woke up and was told he might never walk again. He came around nearly every day and not just for Miguel. If Carmen or her mother needed help with something, he would be there.

But Carmen could see that Johnny himself was lost and in freefall. His former sensei had stolen his dojo and students from him when he wasn’t looking. His son, Robby, was in juvenile detention. And to make things worse, the All Valley Sports Arena was thinking about permanently banning karate after pushback from parents and the general public after what had happened at the school. Carmen saw how that news was hitting him hard.

So she had sat him down on the sofa and talked to him. As much as he and Miguel needed each other, there was only so much he could do for her son. Miguel would have a long recovery ahead of him. But being a sensei was his calling. Johnny needed to know that his other students needed him too. Other kids who are being bullied and in need of confidence and discipline would need him as their sensei, but only if he fought to save karate in the Valley. To do that, he would need to take back Cobra Kai from that horrible man.

Her mother’s voice breaks her out of the reverie.

“¡Ábrelo! No hagas esperar a una anciana. Qué te regaló Johnny?”

“Yaya,” Miguel objects as his grandmother affectionately slaps him on the arm.

Everyone tunes in as he opens the envelope. One could hear a pin drop despite songs in Spanish playing in the background. Johnny crosses his arms, trying to desperately hold back his anticipation.

Miguel takes out a slip of paper. He examines it, expression transforming from a state of confusion to pure joy in seconds. “Oh, my God!”

Johnny breaks out into a grin.

“What is it, mijo?” Carmen asks.

“Sensei bought me a ticket to see Dee Snider in concert.”

At his mom and grandma’s blank looks, Miguel sighs and shares a glance with his sensei before turning his attention back to them. “You know, the frontman for Twisted Sister?”

“As if there’s any other,” Johnny scoffs.

“They sang ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’,” Miguel attempts to clarify.

“Oh, that’s nice.” Carmen doesn’t understand her son’s musical tastes. But Johnny had influenced her son in more ways than just the one.

“I bought  _ us _ tickets,” Johnny informs him as he brandishes his own. Somehow, the young man smiles even brighter. Johnny smirks. “What, you think I’m gonna let you go alone when you have me to thank for your musical education?”

He turns to Carmen. “Before you ask, I already checked. The venue is wheelchair-accessible.”

She smiles at him, pleased “That was very thoughtful of you.”

* * *

Rosa insisted that Johnny stays for dinner. They feasted on roasted turkey, hornado de chancho, llapingachos, fried plantains, and rice, as well as a variety of desserts. As Miguel called his friends to compare gifts, Johnny helped the Diaz women clean up.

As he walks to the door, loaded down with more than enough leftovers for a week and a half, Carmen calls out to him. He stops, intending to turn to her, but nearly drops a covered plate of plantains.

Carmen is in front of him in an instant. “Here, let me help you.” Before he has a chance to refuse her help, she takes half of the containers and covered dishes from him.

“Thanks.”

“It’s no trouble.”

They walk outside. An awkward silence falls as they cross to Johnny’s apartment door. They can still hear the music from Carmen’s apartment. Johnny flicks on the lights as they walk inside. They put the food in the fridge.

Finally, she speaks. “Johnny, I want to thank you. For everything that you’ve done for Miguel. I know that I haven’t always agreed with you or your... methods. But you have made a difference. Not only in my son’s life but in his friends’. And in mine.”

He watches her intently.

“Johnny, I believe in you. And I want you to keep fighting. Fight to get your dojo back. You didn’t just put money and time into Cobra Kai, you put your heart into it. You can’t let Kreese take that from you and do nothing. Those kids, Miguel’s friends, your students -- they need you. Whether they realized it yet or not, they do. You told me what he did to you and your friends. You can’t let him do that to these children. And just as importantly, fight for your son.”

“How? Robby is stuck in juvie. He doesn’t want to see me. He still thinks that LaRusso and I turned him in and threw him away. And with as much time as I’ve spent with Miguel, he probably thinks I do blame him and that I’ve replaced him. With Shannon still in rehab, the kid probably feels even more alone.”

Carmen takes his hand. “Keep trying. Keep going. It doesn’t matter if he won’t see you. He’ll still know that you care about him. That you still love him.”

“Of course, I do. He’s my son. No matter how many times I fail him or he gives up on me, I will still love him.”

“Then tell him. And make sure he knows that you forgive him for what happened with Miguel. As hard as it was, I have. And I don’t blame him. Let Robby and the judge know that he has you and a home to come back to when he is released. Your son needs you, just as much, if not more, than Miguel does.”

Johnny nods. “I’ll do that. Thank you. And you believing in me, that means a lot.”

Carmen smiles warmly. “You don’t have to thank me.” She looks down for a second, trying to figure out how to verbalize the next thing she wants to say. After a deep breath, Carmen looks deep into those blue eyes. “Before, before everything happened, we were growing closer. I know that you’re a good man, Johnny. Or that you can be when you let yourself. Keep up the good fight and keep doing better.”

Then she leans in, softly kissing him. It takes him completely by surprise. Just as soon as he kisses her back, Carmen pulls away. “And then, maybe, well, we’ll see.” With that said, she is soon back out the door.


End file.
